On 17 June 1974 the
Provisional IRA bombed the British
Houses of Parliament causing extensive damage and injuring eleven people.
Background
The
Provisional IRA began a bombing campaign in England in March 1973 when they
bombed the Old Bailey court house, injuring over 200 people. The following year was the worst year of
the Troubles outside of
Northern Ireland: at the beginning of 1974 the IRA exploded a
bomb on a coach carrying soldiers and some family members on the M62, killing 12 people including four civilians. A month before the Houses of Parliament bombing, 34 people were killed in the
Republic of Ireland in the
Dublin and Monaghan bombings of May 1974 carried out by the
Ulster Volunteer Force, the worst single incident of the conflict.
Bombing
A man with an Irish accent telephoned the
Press Association
PA Media (formerly the Press Association) is a multimedia news agency, and the national news agency of the United Kingdom and Ireland. It is part of PA Media Group Limited, a private company with 26 shareholders, most of whom are national and re ...
with a warning given just six minutes before the device exploded. London police said a recognised IRA codeword was given. The bomb exploded in a corner of
Westminster Hall at about 08:30 am on 17 June 1974. The IRA in a telephoned warning said it planted the bomb that weighed around 20 lb (9.1 kg). The explosion is suspected to have damaged a gas main and a fire spread fast through the centuries-old hall in one of Britain's most security-tight buildings.
An annex housing a canteen and a number of offices was destroyed, but the great hall itself received only light damage. The attack signaled the start of a renewed IRA bombing campaign in England that was to last until late 1975 and was to claim the lives of dozens of people. The most notorious attacks of the bombing campaign were the
Guildford pub bombings
The Guildford pub bombings occurred on 5 October 1974 when the Provisional Irish Republican Army (IRA) detonated two gelignite bombs at two pubs in Guildford, Surrey, England. The pubs were targeted because they were popular with British Army p ...
in October 1974 that killed five and injured 60, and the
Birmingham pub bombings of November 1974, which killed 21 people and injured 180.
Aftermath
The year 1974 ended with the IRA killing 28 people (23 civilians and 5 British soldiers) in bombing operations in England. 21 people were killed in the Birmingham pub bombings and a further 7 were killed in the Guildford and
Woolwich Pub bombings. Nearly 300 people were injured from these bombings alone. The IRA called off their bombing campaign in February 1975 but restarted it in August 1975 with a bombing
in a Caterham pub which injured over 30 people. A week later the IRA carried out the
London Hilton bombing which killed 2 and injured over 60.
See also
*
1974 Tower of London bombing
The 1974 Tower of London bombing happened on 17 July 1974 with the explosion of a 10-14 pound bomb in the White Tower of the Tower of London. The blast left one person dead and injured 41 people, with many having lost limbs and suffering severe ...
*
Old Bailey bombing
*
Brook's bombing
*
List of attacks on legislatures
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:House of Parliament bombing, 1974
Houses of Parliament bombing
Provisional IRA bombings in London
1974 crimes in the United Kingdom
1970s crimes in London
Houses of Parliament bombing
1974 building bombings
Attacks on buildings and structures in London
Crime in Westminster
Parliament of the United Kingdom
Houses of Parliament bombing
1970s in the City of Westminster
Building bombings in London
Houses of Parliament bombing
Palace of Westminster
Fires in London